Saturday, October 13, 2007

With all I had learnt from constructing the first leaf box I decided, the next day, to make another one.

This time I realised it was important to only use leaves that had a solid right angle in the veins and not to use leaves that didn't. I had used leaves that weren't fully 90 degrees in the first box and it had skewed the shape quite considerably.

Whilst hunting for suitable leaves in the cemetery I discovered that certain trees had many leaves that were right angled or a little more whereas others had none, all were less that 90 degrees. I found the right trees last and I was getting little worried that I wouldn't find any suitable ones as I examined leaves from several trees before I found some good ones.

Eventually I had found enough and collected a load of thorns and began. I concentrated on ensuring the shpae was as good as I could get it and that the sides were of even lengths. As I came to finish it one of the side joins had split but I found thos useful as I could get my fingers inside to place the last few thorns and one finished the gap was held closed and was invisible.

I am really pleased with the final result and the box has a real tactile quality, the leaves feel soft and box has a kind of spring. I guess it will dry out over time and go much browner and drier.

I had a lot of difficulty getting a decent picture of the first box. I couldn't find anywhere outside to take a decent picture and with the stems stuill attached to the leaves it just wouldn't sit properly anywhere. So with this box I decided to take a picture indoors using natural light and a reflector to help the contrast. I tried in on a black background but white seemed to be better.

I am making quite a collection on leafworks now - two horns and two boxes to go with the stick balls.

About Me

I make sculptures from natural materials, gathered near to where each sculpture is made.
Every sculpture is photographed in natural light, using normal camera equipment and without any photoshop trickery. Each photo accurately depicts how each sculpture appeared, at its most vibrant moment, before the elements reclaim the materials back to nature.
I am trying to explore themes to do with time, ecology and the constant flux of the seasons and express these ideas through my land art images.